The Tamale Spaceship

health inspection result · Lower West Side · Chicago
😇clean
  • resultPass
  • critical violations0
  • last inspectedDecember 9, 2025 →
  • address2296 S Blue Island Ave, Chicago 60608
  • cuisineCatering
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Is The Tamale Spaceship clean?

The Tamale Spaceship is currently Pass from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on December 9, 2025. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.

What did inspectors find at The Tamale Spaceship?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on December 9, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

  • ⚠️Utensils, Equipment & Linens: Properly Stored, Dried, & Handled
  • ⚠️Warewashing Facilities: Installed, Maintained & Used; Test Strips
  • 🚿plumbing acting up
    Non-Food/Food Contact Surfaces Clean
  • 🚻bathroom / plumbing issues
    Plumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices
  • 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
    Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean
  • ⚠️All Food Employees Have Food Handler Training
  • 🥜allergen training missing
    Allergen Training As Required

When was The Tamale Spaceship last inspected?

The Tamale Spaceship has 13 inspections on record going back to July 13, 2018. The 12 most recent are shown below.

December 9, 2025 Pass Canvass Re-Inspection · 7 failed findings

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December 2, 2025 Fail Canvass · 9 failed findings

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November 20, 2025 No Entry Non-Inspection · 0 failed findings

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December 10, 2024 Pass Canvass · 0 failed findings

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November 13, 2023 Pass Canvass · 2 failed findings

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August 4, 2022 Pass Canvass · 1 failed finding

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June 13, 2022 Pass Canvass Re-Inspection · 2 failed findings

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June 6, 2022 Fail Canvass · 5 failed findings

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April 1, 2021 No Entry Non-Inspection · 0 failed findings

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September 10, 2019 Pass w/ Conditions Canvass · 10 failed findings

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August 28, 2019 No Entry Canvass · 0 failed findings

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July 25, 2018 Pass License Re-Inspection · 3 failed findings

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The Tamale Spaceship vs Lower West Side

Lower West Side runs 80% clean across 699 tracked restaurants — 551 clean, 98 mid, 38 cooked.

Against the 699 spots Cooked tracks in Lower West Side, this one comes out cleaner than 22% of them.

Other spots in Lower West Side

See every restaurant inspection in Lower West Side →

How Chicago grades restaurants

Chicago does not use letter grades. Every inspection ends in one of three official results: Pass, Pass with Conditions, or Fail. Pass with Conditions means violations were found but corrected on the spot or under a deadline — the restaurant is open, with homework. A Fail means serious violations went uncorrected, and it usually brings a re-inspection within days. Chicago also flags “priority” violations, the ones most likely to actually make someone sick. Cooked reads Pass as clean, Pass with Conditions as mid, and Fail as cooked, and shows the itemized violations behind each result.

Read the Chicago ratings guide →

Inspection findings and available history come from the authority’s published records. Cooked checks daily; publication can lag behind an inspection. Read the date on each result and check the official source for newer information.

Source: Chicago Department of Public Health via Chicago Data Portal. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated December 9, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.

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